Daily Current Affairs – 03-03-2026

Tamil Nadu News

Urban Housing Projects Inaugurated by CM Stalin

In Chennai, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin inaugurated 5,367 tenement houses constructed at a cost of ₹840.76 crore across various parts of Tamil Nadu under the Tamil Nadu Urban Habitat Development Board and laid the foundation stone for 1,984 new residences at a cost of ₹420.34 crore. At an event in Teynampet, he inaugurated 870 tenements built at ₹153.69 crore in Dr. Thomas Road, Subedar Garden, Appasamy Mudali Street, and Periyapalayathamman Koil Street. He also laid the foundation stone for 283 multi-storey tenements costing ₹46.12 crore on Crimson Salai after clearing slums. In Mylapore, he inaugurated 600 apartments built at ₹101.94 crore. At Kotturpuram, he inaugurated 3,897 residences constructed at ₹585.13 crore in project areas including Kotturpuram, Ayanavaram Nagar, Kappal Pillai Thottam, Lotus Thottam in Royapuram constituency, Koyambedu district, Athicheri constituency, Varambara, Malaiamman Thottam, Coronation Nagar, and Papel Part-2 in Tiruvottiyur constituency, and distributed allotment orders to beneficiaries. In the Perumbakkam project area of Perungudi constituency, he inaugurated an indoor sports stadium built at ₹4 crore and laid the foundation stone for 1,701 new multi-storey residences costing ₹374.22 crore and a multi-purpose hall costing ₹5 crore in Satter Nagar. The project areas include facilities such as open-air theatre, gymnasium, volleyball court, 200-meter athletic track, kho-kho ground, children’s park, Anganwadi, and a gallery with 250 seats.

Implementation of the Forest Rights Act in Tamil Nadu

The Forest Rights Act, 2006 (The Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006) was enacted in India to recognize the land rights of tribal communities and traditional forest dwellers living in forest areas. The Tamil Nadu Government has taken several steps to implement this Act. A “Tamil Nadu Forest Rights Act Map Atlas” was prepared using Geospatial Information System (GIS) and satellite map data from the 2011 Census, and it was released by the Chief Minister on April 14 (2025). Through this atlas, data related to the recognition of forest rights in 1,986 tribal villages living in forest areas were identified. Guidelines for the implementation of the Act were compiled in Tamil with the support of trained tribal experts and released by the Chief Secretary on February 6 (2025). A dedicated digital monitoring website has also been introduced for tracking the implementation of the Act and processing petitions. 1,766 government officials were given special training through Village Administrative Officers, and training was also provided to members of Divisional and District Level Forest Rights Committees. More than 1,575 Forest Rights Gram Sabhas in 21 districts were coordinated and reorganized, and Forest Rights Committees were newly constituted. A total of 23,625 members were appointed to these committees, including 7,875 women members as per the one-third reservation rule. To speed up the implementation process, 27 special units were established at the divisional level, employing 73 tribal graduate youths along with 20 tribal master trainers. These teams collected 31,110 forest rights claim forms from families. So far, 15,680 land rights have been granted, and the Tribal Welfare Department has been designated as the coordinating department, with District Collectors supervising field surveys and land measurements carried out jointly by the Revenue Department and Forest Department in Gram Sabhas.

National News

India–Canada Agreements on Uranium Supply and Cooperation

During the official visit of Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney to India, he met Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Hyderabad House, New Delhi, and the two countries signed eight bilateral agreements covering areas such as defence, trade, energy, nuclear minerals, and artificial intelligence. A key agreement worth ₹24,000 crore was signed for the supply of uranium, under which Canada will supply 11,000 tonnes of uranium to India between 2027 and 2035. Two additional agreements were signed in the sectors of scientific minerals and energy, and Canada agreed to supply LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas) to India on a long-term basis. Agreements were also made to establish branches of Canadian universities at IIT Tirupati and the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER). In addition, nine announcements related to new India–Canada joint projects were released. The visit began with Mark Carney arriving in Mumbai on the 27th for a four-day official visit, during which he met business leaders before travelling to New Delhi for bilateral discussions with the Prime Minister of India.

India’s Longest Wind Turbine Blade

The Adani Group, through Adani New Industries, has planned to manufacture India’s longest wind turbine blade measuring 91.2 metres at its manufacturing facility in Mundra, Gujarat. The blades will be used in next-generation wind turbines designed to improve electricity generation in low and medium wind speed areas. The Mundra plant currently manufactures blades measuring 78.6 metres and 80.5 metres, and the new 91.2-metre blade represents an advancement in design, material engineering, and manufacturing capability. The blade will create a rotor diameter of approximately 185 metres. The current production capacity of the Mundra facility is 2.25 gigawatts per year, and the Adani Group plans to increase it to 10 gigawatts in phases. So far, an investment of ₹3,000 crore has been made for wind turbine manufacturing.

Guinness Record for Sapling Plantation in Varanasi

In the Varanasi Lok Sabha constituency of Uttar Pradesh, represented by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, an urban forest named “Namo Van” has been created over 350 acres by the Municipal Corporation. At this site in Sarnath near the banks of the River Ganga, a Guinness World Record was set by planting 2,51,446 saplings within one hour, surpassing the previous record of 1,53,981 saplings planted in one hour in China. Around 20,000 people, including members of public welfare organizations, participated in the plantation drive. Under the Namo Van project, a total of 3,00,000 saplings are being planted, including 2,50,000 Miyawaki species trees, 10,000 other trees, and 40,000 fruit-bearing trees. The project also includes the construction of a 4-kilometre special pathway, with facilities for meditation, yoga, children’s play area, and an open-air gym, along with a 4-hectare flower garden and a 2-hectare herbal garden, and there are plans to establish a naturopathy centre in the future.

FinTech Tower Inaugurated in Chennai

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin inaugurated the FinTech Tower built at a cost of ₹249 crore in Nandambakkam FinTech City, Alandur Taluk, Chennai district, on March 2. The building has been constructed over 5.56 lakh square feet as part of the FinTech City project spread across 56 acres aimed at promoting the financial technology (FinTech) sector in Tamil Nadu. The FinTech Tower includes two basements, a ground floor, and 11 upper floors, built according to steel and green building standards. It contains office spaces for financial and FinTech companies, along with facilities such as conference halls with seating capacities of 250 and 50, restaurants, a gymnasium, and a childcare centre. During the event, Chief Minister M.K. Stalin also issued allotment orders for office spaces in the tower to two private technology companies. The event was attended by MSME Minister T.M. Anbarasan, Industries Minister T.R.B. Rajaa, Chief Secretary N. Muruganandam, and TIDCO Chairman Sandeep Nanduri.

Operation Sankalp and Deployment of Indian Naval Ships

Amid rising tensions in West Asia, India is monitoring the security situation and has kept Indian Navy ships deployed under Operation Sankalp on standby for Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) operations. Under Operation Sankalp, two Indian Navy ships, including a frigate and a destroyer, are deployed in the Gulf of Aden and the Gulf of Oman. These ships have been stationed in the region since 2019 to conduct anti-piracy operations and ensure the safety of merchant vessels and maritime security. The deployment under Operation Sankalp was initiated to protect Indian-flagged commercial ships and maintain maritime security in the region. In addition, the Indian naval ship INS Surat is currently stationed in Bahrain as part of a regional maritime security engagement.

Sports News

Singles and Doubles Titles at Mérida Open

At the Mérida Open Women’s Tennis Tournament held in Mexico City, Spain’s Cristina Bucșa won both the singles and doubles titles. In the women’s singles final, Cristina Bucșa defeated Poland’s Magdalena Fręch with a score of 6-1, 4-6, 6-4 to win her first singles title in her tennis career, while she had earlier won eight titles in the WTA doubles category. In the doubles final, the second-seeded pair of Cristina Bucșa and China’s Jiang Xinyu defeated Isabelle Haverlag of the Netherlands and Maia Lumsden of Britain with a score of 6-4, 6-1 to win the title, which was the first title for the Bucșa–Jiang partnership. For winning the singles title, Cristina Bucșa received ₹1.69 crore prize money and 500 ranking points, while Magdalena Fręch received ₹1.04 crore, and the Bucșa–Jiang pair received ₹56.36 lakh for winning the doubles title.

EPF Interest Rate Fixed at 8.25% for FY 2025–26

The Central Board of Trustees (CBT) has recommended an 8.25% interest rate on Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF) deposits for the financial year 2025–26. The decision was taken during the 239th meeting of the CBT held in New Delhi under the chairmanship of Union Minister for Labour and Employment Mansukh Mandaviya. After the Government of India officially notifies the decision, the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) will credit the interest into the accounts of its members. The 8.25% interest rate is the same as the previous year and continues the trend of EPFO maintaining an interest payout above 8%, supported by returns from Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs) and other investments. The EPF interest rate of 8.25% is 115 basis points higher than the Public Provident Fund (PPF) interest rate of 7.1%. The board also approved a one-time Amnesty Scheme for exempted establishments to resolve pending compliance issues under the Employees’ Provident Fund and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952 (EPF & MP Act, 1952), providing a six-month window for eligible trusts to regularise their status.

Important Days

March 3 – World Wildlife Day

World Wildlife Day is observed every year on March 3 to raise awareness about the importance of protecting wild animals and plants and to highlight the need for conservation of biodiversity. The day was proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in 2013, marking the anniversary of the signing of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) on March 3, 1973. The observance promotes global efforts to combat wildlife crime, illegal trade, and biodiversity loss, and encourages sustainable use of wildlife resources.